1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to food processing means and more particularly to broilers for cooking chicken and other meat products.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Broilers used in fast food and similar food preparing establishments for broiling large numbers of chickens and similar meat products have generally comprised a plurality of heating units, typically gas burners under angled covers, located below a grill on which a number of the chickens are placed. The heating units are individually controlled by an attendant in an attempt to provide an optimum amount of heat which is varied during the broiler process according to his or her judgement in order to cook the chickens within a desired time period.
Preferably, chickens and certain other meat products should be cooked substantilly uniformly throughout. If excessive heat is applied, the exteriors are cooked a desired amount before the interiors are properly cooked, and if continued heat is applied to adequately cook the interiors, the exteriors are overcooked, resulting in a food item that tends to be dry and tasteless. Also, an excessive amount of juices and fat driven from the chickens by the excessive heat drops onto the heating units to vaporize and burn, causing a large amount of greasy smoke to be generated. The burning fat, moreover, results in unhealthful carbon deposits on the cooking chicken or the like.
If an insufficient amount of heat is applied, the chickens are not properly cooked within a prescribed time period and might even cause salmonella poisoning if eaten.
Accordingly, with these prior art broilers a relatively high degree of skill and constant monitoring of the cooking process is required on the part of an attendant.
Furthermore, the heating units of conventional prior art broilers have always been located closely adjacent each other. Therefore, grease droplets falling from the grill area onto the angled covers of the heating units have tended to splash or be deflected onto adjacent burners, causing clogging of the burner jets. This has generally required nightly cleaning of the burners, a difficult and time consuming necessity.